Dr Dara Ramalingam

Research Director, Assessment Development, ACER

Dara Ramalingam (BA, BSc(Hons) Psych Melb, PhD Melb), is the Research Director of the Assessment Development Research Program at the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER). The program consists of 40 researchers, divided into 5 specialist teams, who collectively work on nearly 70 projects. In addition to her management responsibilities, Dara has worked extensively on material for large-scale assessments, including leading test development for the 2025 and 2029 cycles of the Programme for International Assessment (PISA). Dara has also lead ACER’s work on developing resources for teachers that are underpinned by ACER’s learning progressions.

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Assessment matters – the evidence at the heart of education

Oct 26,2026

As a teacher, what can you learn about your students from a good assessment? How can a good assessment support your understanding of individual students and help you plan for the next steps in teaching and learning? We’ve called on our ACER colleague, Dr Dara Ramalingam, Research Director of Assessment Development, to unpack these questions.

assessment, expertise, evidence-based practice, long reads

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